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Cowlitz River
Strong and wide, the Cowlitz River rolls downstream along 1-5 from the
Toledo/Vader
area, past Castle Rock and then loops below Kelso/Longview into a giant fishhook
shape
before joining the Columbia. Huge salmon push their ponderous forms upriver in
the
Cowlitz, yielding thousands of catches to rodsmen enroute. A 24-hour fishery
from 400
feet below the barrier dam near Salkum from April I through July 31 allows
anglers to
take six fish daily, only three of which may exceed 24 inches.
During the period August I-March 31 downstream from the salmon hatchery barrier
dam
signs the basic freshwater salmon bag applies, with two adult fish permitted in
a six-
fish take of salmon over 10 inches in length. From Oct. I through Dec. 31 all
Chinook
over 28 inches in length caught upstream of the 1-5 bridge must be released,
however.
The upper Cowlitz, from the inlet of giant Riffe (Davisson) Lake to the
confluence of
the Muddy Fork and Ohanapecosh Rivers is open all year round for taking a daily
freshwater salmon bag limit (see regs.)
Chinook to 40 and 50 pounds are not rare in the Cowlitz, but most Chinook will
drag
scale needles to around 25-30 pounds. The best catches come in May and June and
again
in late September through November, when schools of bright coho salmon thrash
their way
toward the barrier dam area to join the fray. Plugs, back-bounced shrimp and
cluster
egg baits or bait and yarn combinations angled with drift rigs take their share
of
salmon. Bright spoons and spinners account for a good number of catches too,
with coho
especially fond of tiny No. 0, I and 2 Mepps spinners having nickel or brass
finish. To
cast and fish the pint-size lures, a No. 4 or 6 split shot is added 16 to 20
inches
above the spinner. In the early 70's, tremendous runs of "silvers" flocked into
the
Cowlitz and the fishing near Salkum was superb. Another excellent way of hanging
humungous salmon was to make long casts with thin, heavy spoons such as the
Martin
Tackle Ottogator or Luhr Jensen Krocodile across the river and work the spoons
slowly
downstream, letting them hang at the point of furthest travel to antagonize
salmon into
giving them a savage chewing.
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J&J Fishing Guide
Service
Contact
J&J Fishing Guide
Service
for quality fishing
trips on Snohomish
River, Skagit River,
Cowlitz River, Snake
River, Skykomish river,
Wynoochee River,
Columbia River, Wind
River & Drano Lake for
Salmon, Kings salmon,
Fall Chinook Salmon,
Coho Salmon, Humpies &
Humpy Salmon, Chum
Salmon fishing,
Steelhead fishing
guides, Winter run
Steelhead, Summer Run
Steelhead. |
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Hooked On
Fishing Guide Service
Hooked On
Fishing Guide Service fishes the Northwest runs for
Salmon, Steelhead and Sturgeon at Buoy 10 (Mouth of the Columbia),
for Kings and Silver Salmon, the Cowlitz and Lewis Rivers, &
areas immediately below Bonneville Dam for Spring Chinook. We also
fish from Bonneville Dam upstream to the Priest Rapids/Hanford
Reach areas, near Kennewick, Pasco, & Richland Washington.
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The popular area at the Salkum barrier dam yields a high number of steelhead
catches,
as does the fishing area below the Washington Department of Game trout hatchery
at the
mouth of Blue Creek, due south of Ethel via Tucker and Classe roads. At the
upper
barrier dam near Salkum, boat fishing is no longer allowed between the mouth of
Mill
Creek (good concrete ramp) and the barrier dam deadline markers. Anglers also
should
read their regulations booklet on legal hooks and daylight fishing in this
specific
area.
Good public boat ramps provide access to the Cowlitz fishing at Mill Creek,
Ethel Bar,
trout hatchery, Massey Bar, downstream of 1-5, at the Castle Rock Fairgrounds,
above
Lexington and two miles below Longview. Bank anglers have equal opportunities to
sink
hooks home at dozens of sites reached off Highway 411 near the river mouth or
from
county roads closely pursuing the Cowlitz from Toledo to Salkum. Fishermen can
reach
the upper river from Glenoma to about three miles short of Ohanapecosh by taking
county
and logging roads off Highway 12.
Steelhead catches from the Cowlitz rival the
best rivers in the state and the Cowlitz has ranked as the No. 1 winter river
several
times, producing up to 32,000 steelhead annually. Summer-run fishermen may take
from
500 to 1,600 ironheads each year.
Adding more fishing chances seems like gilding a lily, but there is more ...
excellent
rainbow trout fishing above the two huge reservoirs, Mayfield and Riffe, as well
as
fine sea-run cutthroat fishing in the lower six to eight miles of river. A good
way to
tangle with the feisty and willing cults is to fish light drift gear rigs
sporting
single egg baits or thin, bright trolling spoons. The entire Cowlitz River is
open to
year-round-trout fishing for eight fish daily, with a 12-inch minimum length
requirement. The upper deadline is again the mouth of the Muddy Fork River.
Tributaries
of the upper Cowlitz are covered by the late May-Oct. 31 general season
regulations.
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